Orenda
@pages-and-words @of-fire-and-death
In-eo slowly blinked, trying to shake away the blur in his eyes. He let out an embarrassingly high whine of confusion and panic, completely disoriented. He remembered getting into the carriage but couldn’t recall much after that. He tried to calm his growing panic as he thought about the possibility of being kidnapped by the royal assassins, sitting up clumsily and scanning his surroundings.
He relaxed once he realized he was in a train, with two others, and not tied up so that means not kidnapped. They must have drugged his water to knock him out while they transported him to the carriage. He sighed and leaned back against the back of the seat, closing his eyes for a moment before looking out the window to try and calm down.
Mairead woke slowly to the low rumble of the train cars moving across the tracks. Even before she opened her eyes, she was acutely aware of the weight of her fur coat laying across her. With the comfort of her coat, Mairead almost went back to sleep until she remembered that she had never been on a train before to begin with.
She suddenly starts and flips herself up to sitting, her fingers clutching at her fur. Wide eyes frantically take in the compartment, attempting to orient herself to her surroundings.
At first, Aran doesn’t realize that anything is different. Bundled up in his jacket, he could imagine himself propped against the trunk of a tree, near his house, surrounded by the silence that he was now mostly accustomed to. But it was only the length of a single deep inhale before he realized the differences between his home and where he was now.
While there was the obvious soft movement of the seat beneath him, there was also the fact that it was somehow far more uncomfortable than the ground ever was. A barrage of unfamiliar scents accosted him as he straightened, his eyes searching his surroundings for any sign of where he was. He was halfway out of his seat before he remembered: Orenda. This had to have something to do with that, right? As he calmed down enough to take in the other two figures who shared the small space with him, he realized that while they didn’t exactly seem comfortable, they didn’t have the look of someone who believed themselves to be trapped on the way to an unknown location.
It takes another moment, but eventually, he eases back into his seat, reaching to tug his jacket tighter around his torso as he examines the others. He presses himself against the corner where the seat meets the wall, eyes flickering once more between the two strangers before falling to where his fingers clench and release the rough fabric of his sleeves.
@sirens-lullaby
In-eo’s attention snapped to the other residents of the small compartment as they woke up and took in their surroundings. He decided to observe their reactions and movements in the hopes of figuring out one of their secrets. He knew certain races were more instinct based in their reactions to fear, and figured that certain classes would react to the small compartment differently. Lower classes would probably be more shocked and amazed by the intricate and luxurious design of the wood while nobles would either sneer at the small size of the space or just not care at all.
He frowned a little when their reactions gave him not even the slightest hint. It didn’t help that they were all wearing the black uniforms given by the school and weren’t even allowed to bring their belongings in. This was going to be harder than he originally thought.
The siren perked up as a thought occurred to him, maybe if he got them talking they would slip up eventually. He had no interest in making friends here, the only reason he came was in the hopes that he could get away from the old manner and the nightmarish memories that came along with it. “Hello,” he greeted, trying his best to sound as friendly as possible, a skill picked up from being a noble and having to deal with people he didn't like, but his parents needed. “I’m In-eo, and you two are?”